|
The
chatbot, which is accessed through Musk's social media platform
X, has in the past few weeks been granting a wave of what
researchers say are malicious user requests to modify images,
including putting women in bikinis or in sexually explicit
positions.
Researchers have warned that in a few cases, some images
appeared to depict children. Governments around the world have
condemned the platform and opened investigations into the
platform.
On Friday, Grok was responding to image altering requests with
the message: “Image generation and editing are currently limited
to paying subscribers. You can subscribe to unlock these
features.”
While subscriber numbers for Grok aren't publicly available,
there was a noticeable decline in the number of explicit
deepfakes that Grok is now generating compared with days
earlier.
The European Union has slammed Grok for “illegal” and
“appalling” behavior, while officials in France, India, Malaysia
and a Brazilian lawmaker have called for investigations.
On Thursday, Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer threatened
unspecified action against X.
“This is disgraceful. It’s disgusting. And it’s not to be
tolerated,” Starmer said on Greatest Hits radio. “X has got to
get a grip of this.”
He said media regulator Ofcom “has our full support to take
action" and that "all options" are on the table.
“It’s disgusting. X need to get their act together and get this
material down. We will take action on this because it’s simply
not tolerable.”
Ofcom and Britain's privacy regulator both said this week
they've contacted X and Musk's artificial intelligence company
xAI for information on measures they've taken to comply with
British regulations.
Grok is free to use for X users, who can ask it questions on the
social media platform. They can either tag it in posts they've
directly created or in replies to posts from other users.
Grok launched in 2023. Last summer the company added an image
generator feature, Grok Imagine, that included a so-called
“spicy mode” that can generate adult content.
The problem is amplified both because Musk pitches his chatbot
as an edgier alternative to rivals with more safeguards, and
because Grok’s images are publicly visible, and can therefore be
easily spread.
All contents © copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved
|
|
